As you can see on the right the
cave is very well sign
posted,also you can see the
"parking metre"which is
situated in the car park itself.
Once you have reached the
end of the woods you will be
greeted with the gate and the
small walk to the stone beach
Im very glad i visited the cave in late spring because i was treated to the wonderful
smell of garlic.As you can see on the right the garlic plants line the edges of the
woods for quite a few yards but the smell travels much further.I bet it was a hard
location to film in due to the fact of the walk,getting the props there,and most of all
trudging the horse and cart through the woods and across the stone beach.
Left and right is the stone
beach leading up to the cave
entrance.Its not really a cave
as such,its only about 3 or 4
metres deep tapering to a
point inside.Below is a scene
from the film and compared
with some of my
pictures,again,not a lot has
changed in 33 years.
On the left is a picture ti took
from inside the cave looking
out.I think all that has been
added to the cave over the
years is the gravel track leading
up to the entrance i think due
to the amount of people
visiting.
On the right is the spot where
Lord Summerisle sacrificed a
barrel of beer to the God of The
Sea.As you can see for yourself
its a long way to bring a horse
and cart.
When you do visit the cave you will notice a lot of crosses
all about the surrounding area like the one above.Ive
been told people still make a pilgrimage to St Ninans
Cave and you can see why.A very holy and peaceful
place.
St Ninians cave is situated about 2/3 miles out of Whithorn,take the B 7004
and follow the signs,and its about the same distance from Burrowhead.St
Ninian brought Christianity to Scotland in the mid 5th century and to find
out more about him click on the link.Once you have followed the signs for
the cave you will come to a very small car park ,from there you have to walk
about a mile or so until you come to the cave itself.From the car park you will
walk down a dirt road with the farm buildings on the left until you come to
the entrance to the wooded area.If you walk through the wood in late
spring you will smell the very strong scent of garlic and if you are a big curry
fan like myself it is music to ones nostrils,what a smell!!!!!!.Once through the
woods you walk down another dirt track towards the stone beach and turn
right towards the cave..Dont forget to pay your car park charges aswell!!It
says 20p but put in £1,its all for a good cause.
the wicker man pilgrim